BINOCULAR VISION DYSFUNCTION

General binocular dysfunction is the inability to move your eyes together in an effective manner. Each eye has six eye muscles that move the eyes in a coordinated manner. This movement is controlled by the brain. In a paediatric population, the prevalence of binocular disorders have been found to be 9.7 times greater than the prevalence of any other ocular disease. Vision therapy has proven to be a safe and effective treatment for binocular vision dysfunctions

Subcategories of binocular dysfunction include:

Accommodative disorders

The inability of the eyes to focus. The eyes must be able to sustain focus for long periods of time when doing near work. Also, the eyes must be able to quickly and accurately change focus from distant to near objects.

Convergence disorders

The inability to use both eyes as a team when looking at something up close. When looking at near objects, both eyes should turn inwards and maintain single vision.

Divergence disorders

The inability to use both eyes as a team when looking at something in the distance. When looking at far away objects, both eyes should turn outwards and maintain single vision.

Oculomotor disorders

The inability to quickly and accurately move our eyes. These are sensory motor skills that allow us to move our eyes so that we can fixate on objects (fixation), move our eyes smoothly from point to point as in reading (saccades) and to track a moving object (pursuits).

Diplopia (Double-vision)

Double vision, or diplopia, is a symptom to take seriously. Some causes of diplopia are relatively minor, but others need urgent medical attention. WebMD takes a look at the causes, symptoms, and treatments of double vision.

What Causes Double Vision?Opening your eyes and seeing a single, clear image is something you probably take for granted. But that seemingly automatic process depends on the orchestration of multiple areas of the vision system. They all need to work together seamlessly:The cornea is the clear window into the eye. It does most of the focusing of incoming light.

The lens is behind the pupil. It also helps focus light onto the retina.

Muscles of the eye — extraocular muscles — rotate the eye.

Nerves carry visual information from the eyes to the brain.

The brain is where several areas process visual information from the eyes.

Problems with any part of the vision system can lead to double vision.